DIY Corner: Storage for PolyHero Rogue Dice

Ever since I reviewed PolyHero's Rogue Dice set a few weeks ago, I've been wracking my brains trying to figure out how to get the somewhat delicate Lockpick d20 dice to the table and back without breaking the pick off with my bear-like clumsiness. It's too cool a gaming tool not to take good care of, but as soon as I saw it come out of the clamshell, I thought, "Ruh Roh."

Thankfully, the Lock and Pick d20 came with a plastic insert, molded to cradle them just so in the package to avoid the very breakage I was trying to stave off. That insert came out of the clamshell, and I realized I could make a custom carrying case, built around holding that plastic cradle.

Now all I had to do was find a box. Easier said than done.


The cradle was 3" wide (or tall, or deep, or howthehellever you want to measure it). I was initially looking for a 3" x 5" or 3" x 6" box that I could decorate. You might think, as I did, "Pfft, no problem, how hard can that be?"

The answer: a real pain in the ass. The only boxes that have measurements listed at 3" x 5" are recipe card boxes, and they will not work for this. There are no 3" x 6" boxes, not in wood, nor plastic, nor anything else. I had just about consigned myself to getting a larger box and somehow padding around the plastic cradle so I could make it usable, and then, last week, I was cleaning off my desk, and I picked up a black obelisk and said, "what the hell is this?"

It turned out to be the box my smart phone came in. That black, featureless mass of firm, strong cardboard. I opened it up and looked at the interior and saw that, underneath the useless instruction book, the box was bisected with a cardboard insert. The left half was solid, and the right half divided horizontally, to hold the little fiddly bits and then the clouds parted and radiant light shown down on my fevered brow.

It was EXACTLY the right size for what I wanted to do. I mean, I couldn't have designed a box in CAD better for this.

 Here's the box. I covered the lid with scrapbooking paper that looks like old leather. It was the only thing I could think of without resorting to paint, which may have warped the box.

As you can see, it's a little chunky, but again, it can't be helped because I was keeping the plastic cradle. But it's certainly not unmanageable.

 I only covered the lid, because the box itself is completely hidden except for the bottom, which is black.

I put the velour bag inside to both cover up the loose dice and to provide a "landing strip" when I unbox them. 

 Here we go: This box holds one of everything, including the burglar's bundle. I included that stupid gem d12, but for reals, I can't see myself ever using it for anything in a game. This is just to show you it can all fit.

With the bag out, you can put everything on there, to keep it all from rolling hither and thither. A custom piece of cloth might be better: a small foldable dice pad! But I like the bag, personally. It's more roguish.

 Here's the inside. I did not modify the cradle one bit.

When it comes out, everything inside stays in place. 

 Here's the insert. As it came, there was a lot of extra folded cardstock, and it was longer. I trimmed off all unnecessary parts, and then meticulously trimmed it down until it fit alongside the plastic cradle.

 As you can see, I didn't do anything else to the box: I just removed what I didn't need.

The paper wrap may need reinforcing on the corners. I glued it firmly down, but a coat of Mod Podge would really seal it. Or I may just use tape. My options are limitless, here.




The best thing about this project is that, in addition to being super useful, it upcycles something that I hate throwing away; especially those cardboard boxes, as they are very nice and sturdy. You've probably got one laying around, and if you don't, I am willing to bet the local cell phone dealer has empties they would be happy to give you.

Now, you can take your dice to the game and not worry about breaking your lockpick at a crucial moment!